Roy Harper is a touring folk-rocker eager to get back to the nitty gritty of writing.

In body, Roy Harper was in Lincoln on Wednesday afternoon preparing for a gig, but in mind he was at home, ensconced in his studio, doodling around' on his guitar. "I'm treating this as something of a last tour," he said, "because I'll never play in some of the places again.

"I've got behind with my writing because of all kinds of life pressures - a period of five years mourning a relationship that died, for one thing.

"I need to write at least two new records before I think about touring again, because that's where my heart really is, in writing. Perhaps if I'd have cracked the mainstream I wouldn't be that bothered about anything, but who knows? I've always felt that writing is my raison d'être."

Harper, 66, was signed to Strike Records after being spotted playing Soho folk club Les Cousins in 1966, and he attracted a cult following for his politically aware, sprawling, modern folk songs, which also blend rock and jazz elements. Since the Sixties, he has been touring, making appearances at folk festivals and releasing albums, including the critically-acclaimed Stormcock in 1971.

Over the years, he has worked with Pink Floyd and Kate Bush, and formed an artistic bond with Jimmy Page, founder of rock legends Led Zeppelin. After the Bath Festival of 1970, Zeppelin recorded a song entitled Hats Off to (Roy) Harper, as a tribute to the way Harper stood by his artistic principles.

Harper, who now lives in south west Ireland, seems proud to have established this reputation for nonconformity: "When I started writing 20-minute songs I departed from the mainstream, and it wasn't ever going to come back. I needed to do that because my original influences had that kind of character. That was what I did, because I loved it. To turn that into a commercial thing would be virtually impossible when the governing factor when I started was that nothing could be over three minutes.

"I rebelled against that. I despised it, and I despised the mentality that went along with that because it meant you couldn't be as free as you wanted to be. You had to write a jingle."

Rebellion is in Harper's lyrics as well as his musical style. He sees his words as poetry set to music', and often writes about politics; in McGoohan's Blues (nearly 18 minutes long) he writes: "I'm just a social experiment tailored to size / I've tried out the national machine and the welfare surprise / I'm the rich man, the poor man, the peace man, the war man, the beast / The festive consumer who ends up consumed in the feast."

At times he also gives vent to his anti-religious views, in songs such as The Black Cloud of Islam. The strength of these views becomes clearer on learning about Harper's own religious background, brought up by his father and Jehovah's Witness step-mother: "It was very difficult being brought up like a Jesuit. It was that kind of absolute, strict, formatted life. I escaped from it at the first opportunity.

"You are always subject to your own childhood. Mine was pretty lonely and pretty fierce. I grew up very independent. Even when I was five years old I was out there by myself. I left home when I was 15. I hated the confines that society had on me at that time."

After leaving home, Harper joined the Royal Air Force, only to reject the rigid discipline imposed on him there, feigning madness to obtain a military discharge. On being asked how he managed to do this, he replies self-mockingly, It was easy'.

Despite the strength of many of his views, Harper's perception of his life's work was challenged not long ago when he counted how many songs he had written on different topics: "We came to the conclusion that 39 per cent of the songs were love songs, which I thought was a huge proportion, and I was surprised by that."

Amid all the emotional scarring and political earnestness, it is also surprising that Harper sees humour as an essential element of his work, belying the stereotype of the folk revival man-with-a-guitar.

He said: "Five or ten per cent of the songs are probably specifically aimed at humour, whether that's ha ha guffaw, a cynical dig, or slapstick. I think you've got to indulge in humour. I've seen people of my generation go through a gig without a humorous moment, and that wouldn't fulfil me as an artist.

"In the end some of the things that I'm saying are so damn serious that to present them without presenting humour would be virtually impossible."

But perhaps humour is just another way for Harper to fulfil his role as a breaker of conventions. He certainly sees himself as an outsider.

He added: "I do my absolute best to step out of humanity - if you're not outside of it, then you're in the Orwellian present. But it's not that easy in a capsule on the A46. I don't actually live a virtual life, although I get pretty near to it."

  • Roy Harper will play at the Millfield Arts Centre, Silver Street, Edmonton, on Sunday, at 7.30pm, supported by Matt Churchill. Tickets priced £17 are available from the box office on 020 8807 6680.